Political Theory of Greek, Roman and Medieval Christian Thinkers - Coursework Example

Political Theory of Greek, Roman and Medieval Christian Thinkers Introduction Political thought can be traced back to the ancient Greek times and communities, when the Greeks were experimenting the various political organizations and rules. These political organizations included monarchy, tyranny, aristocracy, oligarchy and democracy. Besides the term political has its original usage in the Greek polis which were the city-states (Rowe & Schofield 19). Political thought, over the centuries, was developed differently by different philosophers all in regard to the ruling power of the time. The political development of politics can be categorized under three main categories, namely Greek period as represented by Plato and Aristotle, the Roman period represented by Cicero and lastly the Christian period represented mainly by Augustine and Aquinas (Richard 35). This paper presents the political thoughts of these great thinkers categorized specifically by their periods of existence, namely the Greek political thought, the Roman political thought and finally the Medieval Christian political thought. Finally, it offers a conclusion that is a summary of the discussed philosophers and their political inspirations. Greek Political Philosophy Plato (427-347) is an Athenian and was a pupil to Socrates whose philosophy and style of debate influenced him greatly. His father died while Plato was young, and his mother got remarried to Pyrilampes under whose care Plato had to grow (Magee 31). Plato joined military service and after the end of Peloponnesian war, he joined the Athenian Oligarchy of the thirty tyrants one of whose leaders was Plato’s uncle Charmides. However, the violence of the group soon hastened Plato to leave it and so when democracy was finally restored in Athens, he hoped that he would eventually pursue his original goal of political career (Rowe & Schofield 24). This was short lived due to the execution of his definitive teacher-Socrates- an act that had gross effects on him and this event convinced him to leave Athenian politics (Rowe & Schofield 34). It is also noted that after 399 BC, Plato begun to write extensively, still staying close to Socrates’ teachings and scholars have referred to these works as Socratic Dialogues. This text included works like Crito, Apology, Laches, Lysis, Charmides, Euthyphro, and Hippias Minor and Major (Magee 32). Later, upon his return to Athens, Plato founded a school of learning which he called the Academy. He had hoped that the Academy would provide a place where thinkers could work toward establishing better government or political organizations In the Grecian cities. After his return, Plato continued writing and among his works, the most influential is The Republic, which is considered by scholars as part of the middle dialogues (Rowe & Schofield 37). Works of these period were referred to as middle dialogues by scholars since unlike the previous group of works which stayed close to Socrates teachings, these works tended toward grander metaphysical themes and Plato begun to establish his own voice in philosophy (Magee 38). Nevertheless, Socrates still has a distance presence in these works but mainly as a fictional character. Later, around 367 BC, Plato was invited as a personal tutor to Dionysus II, the new ruler of Syracuse and when war erupted he returned to the Academy (Magee 39). He spent his final years at the Academy writing and conversing. Scholars have referred to the products of this period as the ‘Later Dialogues which included works like Theatetus, Parmenides, Sophist, Staesmans, Timaeus, Critias, Phiebus and the Law. In 347, Plato died leaving the Academy to his sister’s son Speusippus (Richard 35). Aristotle was among the pupils of Plato when he finally returned to the Academy after teaching Emperor Dionysius II. Born in Stagira to Nichomachus, the court physician to the Macedonian royal family, Aristotle was first trained in medicine before he proceeded to learn philosophy under Plato (Richard 10). Though a bright and brilliant student, Aristotle opposed some of his master’s teachings, and when Plato finally died, Aristotle was appointed head of the Academy. He became a personal tutor to Alexander the Great, but after Alexander conquered Athens, Aristotle returned to Athens and founded his school known as the Lyceum (Richard 18). However, after Alexander’s death, Athens became rebellious against Macedonian rule and so Aristotle’s political situation became quite precarious. He thus escaped to the island of Euboea to avoid being put to death. He soon after died while still in the island of Euboea (Rowe & Schofield 27). Plato’s political philosophy is mainly featured in The Republic, the Statesman and the Laws. In Richard, the three works differ from each other along some crucial dimensions which include their focus projects and purposes (31). The Republic emphasizes that the knowledge in the ruling group is the key to the well-being and health in the city and souls alike (Magee, 48). Purposefully, the Statesman explicates what such ruling knowledge could consist in and what the nature of such ruling could be. The Laws additionally, indicates how the knowledge can be embedded in the administration and maintenance of the city itself, so that the city likes the ‘dialogues become an instantiation of the very principle that it advocates’ (Richard 33). Notably, ethics matters motivate the Republic as Plato in its paradigm of explicating justice- why anyone should bother to be just (Magee 40). Accordingly, Plato placed politics in its ethical and eschatological contexts as an illustration as to why politics matters such profoundly and so why the existing political regimes of the time were so dangerously perverse (Richard 35). To Plato, master knowledge- the knowledge that would govern the entire course of life particularly the good of the soul, is essential in establishing an ideal city. An ideal city to Plato was a form of social and political institution that allowed individuals to maximize their potentials, serve their fellow citizens and live in accordance with universal laws and truths (Magee, 41). According to Rowe and Schofield (28), Plato suggested that if knowledge was the criterion which the Athenians used to choose doctors or ship captains then it was a fortiori be the same criterion of choosing political leaders or used in making political decisions. Under such, an ideal city would be an enlightened one, one based on the highest universal principle and only those individual who are committed to these truths could protect and preserve them for the common good (Rowe & Schofield 30). Thus, it is only the enlightened individuals- philosopher kings who were fit to rule the city. According to Plato, the process of identifying and training a philosopher king is rigorous to ensure that the no one is privileged or chosen based on background circumstances but rather are inwardly called. To Plato, the best form of governance is, therefore, aristocratic which is based on the ruler-ship of philosopher kings, followed by timocracy governance by privileged elite of guardians or strong men (Richard 37). By way of contrast, Aristotle, though heavily influenced by master’s political thought, criticized his Plato’s idealistic nature. Aristotle believed that Plato’s ideal city could never exist in the real world (Rowe & Schofield 41). Accordingly, Aristotle sort to improve Plato’s political idea to ensure practical usability of the theory. In his view, Aristotle believed that there were three main basic forms of political organization, namely; "rule of the one, rule of the few, and rule of the many" (Richard 38). To him, even though the ideal forms of governance are monarchy and aristocracy, both were virtually impossible to practically achieve, and so he introduced a third form, Politeia (Rowe & Schofield 42). This form of governance is born from the unique strength of both the monarchy and the aristocracy (Richard 36). It combined the rule of the law and the rule of the few and it incorporated many of Plato’s ideal elements such as guardianship, self-sufficiency and the critical role of the law while maintaining its practicality thus attainable. Roman Political Philosophy The Roman political philosophy was greatly influenced by the Stoics and the Roman statesman Cicero. "Marcus Tullius Cicero a Roman statesman, lawyer, scholar and writer was born in 106 BCE to a wealthy family of Arpinium, Latium and died in 43 BCE in Formiae, Latium" (Cicero 11). Since his young age, Cicero had strong political ambitions and always struggled to be the best in all his undertakings. Noteworthy since he lacked advantages of proper ancestry, he had only two main career options open to him, namely military career which was known could lead to popularity and thus political opportunity and secondly was the career on law which could also lead to political popularity (Cicero 17). Cicero, while his intellectual prowess could propel him into the Roman elite, since he came from the second tier aristocracy he could not directly into politics and so opted to get into politics via either military or law. He eventually made it into politics via study and practice of the law (Rowe & Schofield 57). To Cicero, politics was of utmost importance that could effectively be influenced by philosophy, under such he subordinated the philosophy to politics. Philosophy to Cicero had a political purpose which was to defend as well as contribute to the improvement of the Roman Republic (Rowe & Schofield 58). He believed that the loss of virtues and the corrupt nature of politicians of his time resulted into the difficulties of Republic. As a way of improvement, Cicero proposed that improvement of character and personal commitment to individual virtue and social stability should be the place prime rather than the self-fame, wealth and power (Cicero 25). Having done this, the elites, who like Plato are the custodians of the administrative authority would thus be able to enact legislations that would strictly ensure that the others to adhere to the similar standards. Consequently, the republic would flourish once again. Cicero’s political thought was greatly influenced by three schools of thoughts, namely Epicureanism, the Stoicism and the Academicism. In his philosophy therefore he "opted to be guided by probability rather than to allege certainty," and this helped him justify the various contradictions in his works (Rowe & Schofield 60). As an academic skeptic, Cicero believed that any belief is considered provisional and subject to change if a better argument is presented. Practically this was essential for his career’s success since as a lawyer he had seen as many sides of an argument as possible so as to argue his client’s cases most effectively (Rowe & Schofield 62). Additionally, he would accept the fact that he would be dealing with new evidence or new issues pertaining to the cases, and this would definitely force him to reconsider his initial position and strategies. From his stoic point of view considered that the best, most virtuous and most divine life was one lived according to reason but not according to the search of pleasure (Cicero 29). This however did not mean that all human beings are to shun pleasure rather it must be enjoyed in the right way. Men, therefore, must follow the natural law which rises from reason. Besides, all human beings share reason and the natural law, under such humanity as a whole can be considered as a community. Again since each person is part of a group of human beings with shared human laws, each is thus part of a political community. Accordingly, each person has duties to each of these communities that to the Stoics are an obligation to take part in politics so as to discharge those duties (Rowe & Schofield 39). Towards the end of his life, Cicero embraced the epicurean school of thought which postulated the rejection of public life and cultivation of private life and the pleasure that accompanied it. Medieval Christian political philosophy According to Clark and Carpenter the term “Medieval” primarily refers to Europe and it include the “pre-scholastic,” “the scholastic” and the “late scholastic” periods. Medieval philosophy was theological in nature, and philosophers and theologians had debates regarding which authority to rely on, either the power of reason or faith (17). The proponents of this period insisted that a rational thought must be directed by faith and scripture. In other words, they applied reason to revelation. Notably, the most significant extra-philosophical influence on the medieval philosophy was Christianity, which provided a rich subject matter for philosophical reflection (Clark & Carpenter 31). The great thinkers of this period though were trained theologians, they however addressed much of the perennial philosophical issues, and they often took a genuinely philosophical approach of understanding the world. To the Christian thinkers, political philosophy occupied a distinct and a quite privileged place in between philosophy itself and revelation, while the contact between revelation and everyday practical life is almost immediate (Nederman & Forhan 43). Political philosophy is held responsible for explaining or justifying the existence of the polity so that it does not cause any harm to either its philosophers or saints when the polity realizes that something clearly disordered exists within it (Nederman & Forhan 47). The great and influential thinkers of this period were St. Augustine of Hippo and St. Thomas Aquinas. Born at Tagaste in 354 to the family of Patricius and Monica, Augustine (Aurelius Augustinus) grew up in a humble background where he received Christian education. As though symbolizing his future conflicts, his father-Patricius- was a pagan who converted to Christianity upon his death bed while his mother- Monica-was devoted Christian (Doody, Hughes & Paffenroth 11). His mother was committed to bring him up as a Christian and though he always found something interesting and attractive about Christ, he persuaded into Manicheanism, Neoplatinism in his frantic search of truth (Nederman & Forhan 32). At the age of eleven, Augustine was sent to school at Madaurus, a small Numidian city about nineteen miles South of Thagaste. While at home in 369 and 390, Augustine came across Cicero’s works that he later noted to have had a lasting impression and awakened his philosophical interest (Clark and Carpenter 13). After a considerable running around as a teenager, he had an affair with a young woman in Carthage who bore him a son, Adeodatus and due to the social difference; he could not marry a lady. Later, Augustine was converted to Christianity and was baptized by Ambrose and was thereafter ordained priest in 391 and consecrated bishop of Hippo in 396 (Doody, Hughes & Paffenroth 25). St. Augustine’s political thought is not such an elaborate political, philosophical theory like the likes of Thomas Hobbes and other political theorists. His political discussions are found in a number of his writings, and his treatment of political subjects draw heavily from upon ethics, social theory, and the philosophy of history, psychology and theology (Magee 35). Though, he did not own coherently assembled political view, his loosely-jointed and heavily theological body of politics can be a rewarding resource for scholars concerned by the nature of government, the relationship between the state and the Church , the implications of religious and moral pluralism for political society and the conditions of just war (Brown 23). Among his literary corpus, a rich source for St. Augustine’s political though is De Civitate Dei, a piece of work which was basically addressing a response to those who blamed Christianization of the Roman Empire for the sack of Rome in 410. In it, Augustine argued that regardless of the great disparity of human cultures, languages, nationalities the most fundamental cleavage in humanity is one that exist between the two groups he called the City of God and the Earthly City (Cambridge Companions Online 213). In Magee, Augustine employed the usage of the concept of city which denoted a discrete political entity to illustrate that the internal dynamics of the two groups can be explained by use of similar concepts appropriate for explaining the behavioral character of a more familiar political entity like that of Rome (34). Brown in his study observed that love and conflict are indeed the central and fundamental concern in Augustine’s discussion of politics (32). Augustine’s identification of a love which defines one of the cities with one of the driving forces in political history can be viewed to suggest that history unfolds owing to the "contest between the Earthly City and the City of God" (Brown 34). Notably, Unlike Plato and Aristotle, Augustine is not interested in which form of government should rule though he pointed out that a people committed to bringing the common good should be given an opportunity to choose their own rulers (Brown 37). To this end, Augustine did not, however, give his proposal further consideration. Moreover, viewed differently, Augustine can be seen to associate the City of God with the Church whose members are on a pilgrimage to the ideal society of God. In contrast, is the Earthly City which according to Augustine is characterized by people of self-interest who love themselves more than their love for God and other people around them (Doody, Hughes & Paffenroth 53). The City of God consisted of those who glory in God and love God rightly and devotedly and its members are unified by their common love of God. On the other hand, the Earthly City is composed with love of self-extending even to the contempt of God. Considered one of the greatest classical thinkers in the history of Philosophy and most influential especially in his interpretation and expounding philosophy in a Christian perspective, "St. Thomas Aquinas was born in the Kingdom of Naples at Rocca Secca purportedly between the years 1225 and 1227" (Magee 81). He was a son to Count Landulf of Aquino and his wife- Aquinas ‘mother- Countess Theodora of Theatre. He began his education at Benedictine Abbey at Mote Cassino and continued to Frederick II’s University where he was first introduced to the new Dominican order and against his family wishes he joined the Dominican order. He later died on the 7th of March in 1274 at Fossa Nuiva as was a Dominican Friar, Theologian and Philosopher (Clark & Carpenter 59). Aquinas political philosophy is tailored to reflect Christian Aristotelianism in which man has an ultimate end designated by God, operation though nature; similarly the ultimate purpose of political institutions should also aim at enabling man reach his very end. Contrary to Augustine’s view that political institutions are but the product of human sinfulness, Aquinas postulated that the human being by nature is political animal (Torrell 21). To him, the human being had natural impulses to gather with others of his species and discuss political concepts such as justice and right. In addition, political institutions could best create the conditions that man needed to pursue and reach his end of a life of virtue (Magee 87). Furthermore, Clark and Carpenter observed that since politics is purposefully vested with human moral development, to Aquinas political freedom becomes associated with the regime which leads man to his final good, which he from adopted Aristotelian good, a life of rational and virtuous action (71). Conclusion The political philosophy can be categorized into different epochs in the historical period, namely Greek, Roman and Christian political periods. The main focus for the Greek political philosophers was on how a city state should be governed and what type of governance was the appropriate. The Roman political philosophy as represented by Cicero, the loss of virtues and the corrupt nature of political leaders’ results into difficulties under such improvement of character is essential for proper governance. Finally, according to the medieval Christian thinkers, God had pre-established a distinct human end which men form political institutions to achieve the very end. In other words, political institutions should help man achieve their pre-ordained ends. Works Cited Brown, Peter and Robert, Lamont. “Augustine of Hippo: A Biography.” (The University of California Press, 2000). Print. Cambridge Companions Online. “Companions to Philosophy, Religion and Culture.” Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2006. Web. 16-11- 2014. Available at http://universitypublishingonline.org/cambridge/companions/ Cicero, Marcus and Tullius, Cicero: “On Moral Ends. Cambridge.” Cambridge University Press, Aug 16, 2001.Print Clark, Linda and Carpenter, Christine. “Political Culture in Late Medieval Britain.” (Woodbridge: Boydell Press, Jan 1, 2004). Print. Doody, John; Hughes, Kevin L. and Paffenroth, Kim. “Augustine and Politics.” (Lexington Books, 2005). Print. Magee, Bryan. “The Great Philosophers: An Introduction to Western Philosophy.” (Oxford University Press. 2000). Print Nederman, Cary J. and Forhan, Kate, L. “Readings in Medieval Political Theory: 1100-1400. Indianapolis.” (Hackett Publishing, Jan 1, 2000). Print. Richard, J. Regan. “Commentary on Aristotles Politics.” (Hackett Publishing. 2007). Print. Rowe, C. J. and Schofield, Malcolm. “The Cambridge History of Greek and Roman Political Thought.” (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000). Print. Torrell, Jean-Pierre. “St. Thomas Aquinas: the Person and His Work, Volume 1. Washington.” (CUA Press, 2005.) Print. Read More